C3 The Expert Please Wait!

Ye Tian's brow furrowed in displeasure at Tang Qianshan's behavior.

"To refine pills, one must first cultivate virtue!" he had once imparted this wisdom to Bai Jiuyi when teaching him the art of pill refining.

That same phrase later became the oath of the Heavenly Pill Alliance. Every alchemist joining the Alliance was expected to uphold it.

Clearly, Tang Qianshan had violated this sacred promise.

"What's the matter? Can't handle the truth?" Tang Qianshan taunted. As a level one alchemist, he didn't need to lift a finger; a mere word from him would send others scrambling to discipline Ye Tian on his behalf.

Xia Qingyue quickly intervened, urging Ye Tian not to antagonize Tang Qianshan and risk bringing trouble upon himself.

With a wry smile, Ye Tian touched his nose, amused that he, nearly ten thousand years old, was receiving cautionary advice from a teenage girl.

Nonetheless, he recognized the sincerity in Xia Qingyue's concern.

"Fine, for your sake, I'll let it go," Ye Tian conceded, then turned and walked away.

Tang Qianshan gloated, "That kid knows his place! He wouldn't dare cross me even if he had ten times the courage."

At that moment, the door to the adjacent pill refining room swung open.

A venerable elder with white hair and an imposing presence emerged and entered the room.

"What's all this commotion about?" he inquired, his voice raspy yet commanding.

Upon seeing the elder, both Tang Qianshan and Xia Qingyue's faces registered shock. They quickly bowed and greeted him with reverence, "Greetings, Master Zuo!"

The three pill patterns on Zuo Qiu's garment signified his esteemed rank as a Level Three alchemist and his role as the leader of the Heavenly Pill Alliance's Luoshui City branch.

"Master Zuo," Tang Qianshan began, "a presumptuous youth was here earlier, carelessly attempting to refine pills. I feared for the Pill Furnace's safety and had to send him away."

Xia Qingyue's brows knitted in concern, taken aback by Tang Qianshan's blatant distortion of the truth.

"I see," Zuo Qiu said, nodding in understanding. As he was about to depart, a whiff of a fragrant pill scent caught his attention. He inhaled deeply, and his expression was one of utter shock. In a swift motion, he shoved Tang Qianshan aside and lunged toward the Pill Furnace that Ye Tian had been using.

His face was a picture of excitement, and his voice quivered as he exclaimed, "Purple... the Purple Flame Pill... That's unmistakably the scent of the Purple Flame Pill!"

The Purple Flame Pill was a Level Three medicinal pill renowned for its ability to clear the meridians, a rarity with an exceedingly valuable formula. Legend had it that an esteemed master had developed it and bestowed the recipe upon the leader of the Heavenly Pill Alliance.

Zuo Qiu had earned the formula as a reward for his decades of diligent service with the Alliance. Despite his persistent efforts and study over the years, success in crafting the Purple Flame Pill had always eluded him.

He could hardly believe that someone in Luoshui City had managed to refine it!

The residual warmth of the Pill Furnace indicated that the pill had been crafted very recently.

"You're telling me a young man was refining pills just now? And you let him go?" Zuo Qiu spun around, his aged eyes blazing with intensity as he bore down on Tang Qianshan, an almost palpable aura of menace emanating from him.

Tang Qianshan's heart lurched, his scalp tingling with fear, and he nodded shakily in confirmation.

"Find that master and bring him back here, now!" Zuo Qiu bellowed, nearly beside himself with urgency.

Without another word, he dashed out of the Pill Refining Room in search of the elusive expert. Tang Qianshan, wiping the sweat from his brow, quickly followed suit.

At that very moment, Ye Tian was just exiting the gates of the Heavenly Pill Alliance. Tang Qianshan spotted him in the crowd and pointed him out to Zuo Qiu, "Master Zuo, that's him."

"Master, please hold on a moment!" Zuo Qiu called out, rushing to catch up to Ye Tian. When he reached him, he asked with the utmost respect, "Excuse me, was it you who refined that batch of pills just now?"

Ye Tian's demeanor was calm as he quirkily raised an eyebrow and remarked, "Finally, someone who recognizes quality."

Implicitly, he was acknowledging Zuo Qiu's earlier statement.

Zuo Qiu shuddered, his face taking on an even deeper shade of respect. He turned his icy stare to Tang Qianshan and demanded, "How did you treat this master just now?"

"I..."

Tang Qianshan found himself at a loss for words.

Enraged, Zuo Qiu pressed him until Tang Qianshan had no choice but to reluctantly recount the recent events to Zuo Qiu.

"To refine pills, one must first cultivate virtue! This is the ancestral teaching handed down to us!"

"You've dishonored our ancestral teachings and don't deserve to remain in the Heavenly Pill Alliance!"

"You're expelled!"

Zuo Qiu's declaration thundered in Tang Qianshan's ears, leaving him ashen-faced as if struck by lightning.

Afterward, Zuo Qiu warmly extended an invitation to Ye Tian to join him at the Heavenly Pill Alliance for a discussion.

Ye Tian, however, shook his head. He was eager to take the Purple Flame Pill to unlock his Profound Veins and didn't want to delay. Still, he found Zuo Qiu's conduct somewhat admirable.

So, Ye Tian offered a piece of advice: "The method for refining the Purple Flame Pill may be uncommon, but one must not deviate from the proper path. Otherwise, not only will you fail, but it could backfire... Remember, maintaining a calm mind is crucial."

With those parting words, Ye Tian turned and walked away.

Zuo Qiu stood there, thunderstruck, his mind a whirlwind of revelation.

A few simple sentences had led him to an epiphany, clearing the clouds to reveal the sun!

Such an obvious truth, yet it had eluded him for three long years!

Overcome with emotion, his eyes brimmed with tears.

Truly, this was the mark of a master!

"Senior, may I have your name?" Zuo Qiu hurriedly asked with great reverence. He was bursting with questions about the art of alchemy, but he knew this was not the moment to inquire.

"I am surnamed Ye."

Ye Tian's response came without a backward glance as his silhouette receded into the distance.

Xia Qingyue, standing by Zuo Qiu, expressed her astonishment, "How can he be so aloof? He actually turned down Master Zuo's invitation."

Zuo Qiu simply chuckled and shook his head, "That's the mark of a true master. This elder's prowess in alchemy is nothing short of formidable. Do some digging on the Ye family in Luoshui City, and make sure you establish a strong rapport with them."

Xia Qingyue's expression was one of astonishment; she hadn't anticipated such high praise from Zuo Qiu for this individual. She committed his words to memory without delay.

"Oh, and Master Zuo, it's just three days until your alchemy lecture at Spirit Feather Academy. I'll accompany you then," Xia Qingyue offered as a reminder.

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